The present invention generally relates to the selection and coordinating of colors, such as using color selector devices and the like. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system by which colors can be easily identified and the relationships to other colors can be understood even when a color selector device is not available for reference.
The human eye can see over ten million colors. The three primary colors are red, yellow and blue. The colors are called primary because they cannot be mixed from other colors. When the three primary colors are formed into a circle and each is mixed with its adjacent color, secondary colors are created. Combining red and yellow results in orange, yellow and blue results in green, and blue and red results in violet. A third tier of colors is created by mixing one primary with its adjacent secondary color resulting in yellow/green, blue/green, blue/violet, red/violet, red/orange and yellow/orange. Subsequent tiers of colos can be created by continuing to mix colors.
The sequence of colors on a color wheel isn't happenstance. It is based on the order in which color appears in the spectrum of light from the shortest wavelength to the longest. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet is the sequence seen in a rainbow. When these colors are arranged into a circle, a color wheel is formed. Intermediary colors are created by combining adjacent colors as described above. Various color values (the lightness or darkness of the color) are created by adding varying amounts of white (creating a tint of the color) or black (creating a shade of the color). Toned colors are created by adding gray to the color or hue. Thus, other color wheels or color selector devices can be made for other color groups, such as “neutral” colors, “tonal” colors or even “fluorescent” colors.
Among others, color wheels are often used by artists, decorators, florists, cake decorators, painters and people involved in crafts such as quilting, needlework, beading and scrap-booking. Painters typically mix various pigments to create a needed color. Non-painters do not have the luxury of mixing colors to obtain new colors. Both painters and non-painters typically use color wheels to find aesthetically pleasing color combinations.
Pleasing combinations are possible, as well, by combining the colors found at the corners of symmetrical geometric shapes: straight line (complementary); equilateral triangle (triad); isosceles triangle (split complement); square (square tetrad) and rectangle (rectangular tetrad).
Throughout history, scientists have invented systems that explain the relationships among colors. Colors can be scientifically organized and described in various ways, but to consumers there are essentially three central issues. First, do the colors in different products or with different textures match, i.e., do they look the same placed next to each other? Second, do different colors harmonize with each other? Third, will the results of using several different combinations coordinate with each other? A common problem that consumers face is that colors identified with the same name often are different in appearance. For example, the color “sage” can have different tints, tones, or values between different manufacturers, products, etc. Thus, matching, e.g., a pillow with a comforter or couch can be a daunting task for a consumer. Sometimes, consumers will actually bring the article to be matched or coordinated into the store to compare the products side-by-side. Otherwise, the consumer must purchase the item and take it home to see if it coordinates or matches. However, even if they do this, colors may not appear consistent because of variations in artificial lighting and ambient color influences from adjacent products.
The aforementioned color selector devices (color wheels) can be used to a large extent to assist a consumer in selecting matching or coordinating colors when working on a project, decorating, etc. However, the consumer might not have the color selector device handy when shopping. Also, it is possible that the exact color to be matched may not be found on the color wheel. Thus, the consumer is often left with the daunting task of finding colors which exactly match or coordinate with one another when purchasing products. Such products can include, but are not limited to, sewing, quilting, scrap-booking, general crafting, and interior decorating. Accordingly, there is a continuing need for a color identification system to assist consumers in finding exact matching colors between products and which can also assist the consumer in finding coordinating color combinations. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides other related advantages.